The pace of play on a golf course is critical to the successful operation of both golf facilities and tournament golf. In order to successfully manage pace on a golf course, it is vital that the overall pace of lead groups and the intervals between successive groups (i.e., the cycle time) be carefully monitored and controlled.
In its most basic form, the time to play of a group (group i in this case) is given by the following equation:Troundi=Troundi−1+ΔTcyclei−ΔTstarti where ΔTcyclei is the cycle time for group i and ΔTstarti is the starting time interval. In other words, the time it takes for group i to play is equal to the time it takes for the preceding group to play plus the cycle time, minus the starting time interval. This can be made even more general by considering all of the groups that proceed group i:
      T    round    i    =            T      round      1        +                  ∑                  k          =          2                i            ⁢              Δ        ⁢                                  ⁢                  T          cycle          k                      -                  ∑                  k          =          2                i            ⁢              Δ        ⁢                                  ⁢                  T          start          k                    
As can be seen in the above equations, in order to successfully manage pace of play, three key elements must be measured and controlled:                the pace of group 1        the cycle time between successive groups        the starting interval        
Currently, the best opportunity to monitor these key timing metrics is through the use of a golf-cart based GPS tracking system. These systems incorporate a GPS tracking and mapping system on individual golf carts. Zones around the golf course are created such that, as the cart moves through the golf course, the time when the golfer starts and completes each hole, for example, can be measured. The position of the cart and these times may then be relayed to a central receiver where the golf course operator can monitor the progress of each cart. Management decisions based on this timing data can be made accordingly.
There are a number of drawbacks with such cart based systems. A golf course may typically have 75, 100 or more golf carts and so the cost of employing the GPS tracking can be prohibitively expensive. Also, not all golfers elect to ride carts.
Another system that could be envisioned employs radio frequency identification (RFID) tags carried by the golfer and a system of RFID readers placed throughout the golf course, similar to timing systems used for running and other multisport races. Such a system also has significant drawbacks in that the golfers would be required to carry and return the RFID tags. Golfers would also have to be channeled such that they came within the required close proximity of the RFID readers.
Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to provide a simplified and reliable system for monitoring the pace of play of a golf game.
It is another object of the invention incorporate monitoring the pace of play of a golf game into the actual play of a group of players.